Pollution from fires in Pacific Northwest

Portland’s
Air Is Even More Polluted Than Shanghai’s Right Now Due to Wildfire
Smoke

Feeling
a little wheezy today? That's because the air in Portland is
currently more polluted than that of Shanghai, Beijing and New Delhi.
The Pacific Northwest has among the worst air quality of anywhere in
the country today.

According
to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the air quality in
Portland has reached the "unhealthy" stage, or stage four
of their six-stage gauge to determine air quality. Right now,
Portland is measuring a 174 Air Quality Index. Anything above 201 is
considered "very unhealthy." Gresham, Hillsboro and
Beaverton are all in the "unhealthy" range as well. The
high levels of air pollution are due to smoke from wildfires around
the state.

The
air quality is so bad that Portland Parks and Recreation has closed
Portland's outdoor public pools for the rest of the day, as well as
tomorrow. They plan to reopen on Saturday. The movie scheduled to
screen at the North Park Blocks and concert scheduled for Kenton Park
have also been cancelled, as are activities scheduled at Holladay
Park and Director Park.

When
air quality reaches into the "unhealthy" range, Oregon
Health Authority recommends schools cancel athletic events and
practices, where students will be out for 2-3 hours.

If
you do need to cool off somewhere, the city has opened three
additional cooling centers, and Portland Parks and Recreation has
increased community center offerings.

Here
are the cooling center locations open today. The county is also
offering free transportation to its cooling centers. A ride is
available by calling 503-226-0700.

The
air quality has been getting progressively worse since Monday, when
Portland had a 59 AQI, which is considered moderate. Yesterday,
levels reached 101 AQI, which is considered unhealthy for sensitive
groups.

DEQ
suggests people with heart or lung disease, children and older adults
should avoid all physical outdoor activity, and that everyone should
avoid prolonged outdoor exertion.

This
advice is likely to remain in effect; the smoke doesn't look like
it's leaving anytime soon, according to the National Weather Service.

"Models
are currently in disagreement for when the smoke will be moving out
of the area," says meteorologist David Bishop. "Some of the
models have it moving out Friday afternoon or Friday evening going
into Saturday, and others have it hanging around until the middle of
next week."

The
smoke is, however, doing a small part to actually keep the city
cooler, Bishop explains. Temperatures were originally forecasted for
106 or 107 degrees today, but the National Weather Service is now
forecasting 104 or 105 degrees.

Thankfully,
this weekend should be a little cooler, with temperatures forecasted
for 96 degrees on Friday, 92 for Saturday and 95 degrees for Sunday.
Early next week, temperatures should be in the upper 80s to lower
90s, whether or not the smoke stays around.

Portland
hasn't had air quality this poor since summer 2015 when levels
reached the "very unhealthy" range, according to Oregon DEQ
spokesperson Greg Svelund.

"We
saw conditions that were worse than we're seeing now," Svelund
says. "We haven't seen anything since then that's been near this
in terms of impact. For the most part, Portland is lucky when it
comes to wildfires and usually avoid smoke, but sometimes we can get
inundated pretty good."